Lady Scorps coach not happy with state seedings

WINDOW ROCK

The New Mexico Activities Association released the state brackets for all classifications for both boys and girls on Sunday.

The Farmington girls were given the No. 4 seed in the 5A bracket behind top seed Volcano Vista, Hobbs, and La Cueva.

And although the NMAA used a six criteria system to determine the seedings, Farmington head coach Larenson Henderson feels that his girls were unfairly slighted, having posted a 26-2 overall record.

“I was really disappointed in that,” Henderson said. “We had a better record than most teams, especially with Hobbs and La Cueva, the two teams ahead of us.”

“We had a better record, and we went head-to-head with both teams,” he added. “We beat both teams, and we beat a lot of district championship teams.”

As part of their 26 wins, the Scorps came out ahead of Kirtland Central, Hobbs, Las Cruces, and Tohatchi, teams that won its respective districts.

Those wins, Henderson said, should have earned his team at least a second seed. But as part of the six criteria system, the NMAA has stated that “one district team cannot be seeded or selected higher than another if they came out of the district as a lower seed, with regular-season taking precedence over tournament play.”

In the District 2-5A race, La Cueva finished as the top seed with a 9-1 record while Farmington came in second at 8-2, which earned La Cueva a higher seed.

“We worked really hard all year,” Henderson said. “We went to all those teams, and we beat them at their gyms, so I don’t agree with our seeding.”

With the No. 4 seed, Farmington is placed on the same side as the top seed Volcano Vista in the top bracket.

“I was hoping to play Volcano Vista in the state championship game,” Henderson said. “If we both win, we’ll meet in the semifinals. We still have a lot proving to do.

The Scorps opens the playoffs with district foe Eldorado, who earned the No. 13 seed on Friday.

“I think we’re feeling confident right now, and we’re playing at a high level,” Henderson said. “We’re anxious to get the tournament going. Our sights are pretty much set on playing Volcano Vista.

“We want that challenge, and right now, it’s going to take two games to get there,” he said. “We need to make sure we capitalize on both of them.”

Should Farmington win on Friday, the Scorps will get the winner between No. 5 Las Cruces and No. 12 Clovis on Tuesday at home.

The Henderson-coached team enters the state tournament on a two-game winning streak, including a 70-64 win over La Cueva in the district tournament finale on Saturday night.

“I was really proud of the girls because they stepped up for the challenge and, you know, the outcome was great,” Henderson said. “That was huge for us because La Cueva is a very athletic team. They’re strong and aggressive, so we had to match their intensity.”

Farmington got off to an 8-0 lead behind a pair of treys from seniors Kiiyani Anitielu and Audra Henderson.

La Cueva, however, bounced back and trailed 10-7 at the end of the first.

The Lady Bears outscored Farmington 14 to 13 in the second, with the Scorps clinging to a 23-21 halftime lead.

The Bears came out of the half a bit hungrier, scoring 14 of the first 19 points for a 35-28 cushion.

After that slow start, Farmington bounced back with an 18-9 run to take a 46-44 advantage after three-quarters of play.

The Scorps pushed that margin to 51-46 following back-to-back treys from sophomore Kapiolani Anitielu in the early going of the fourth.

Farmington then stretched that lead to 68-55 on a transition layup from Audra Henderson with 2:37 left.

Kiiyani led Farmington with 22 points, Kamalani chipped in 19, Kapiolani had 15, and Audrey Henderson finished 14.

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